Method for manufacturing clad material and equipment for manufacturing the same

ABSTRACT

Equipment for manufacturing skin material of a clad material includes a casting apparatus which melts and mixes a metal for the skin material different from the core material in their component compositions, and casts the skin material; an ingot-cutting apparatus which cuts an ingot for skin material which is cast by the casting apparatus; and a conveying apparatus which conveys the ingot for skin material among each apparatus. The ingot-cutting apparatus is a slicing apparatus which slices the ingot for skin material into a predetermined thickness.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a divisional of and is based upon and claimsthe benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. §120 for U.S. Ser. No.12/095,983, filed Jun. 3, 2008, the entire content of which isincorporated herein by reference.

U.S. Ser. No. 12/095,983 is the national stage of PCT/JP06/324429, filedDec. 7, 2006, and claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. §119from Japanese Patent Application Nos. JP 2005/356810 filed Dec. 9, 2005,JP 2006/054205 filed Feb. 28, 2006, JP 2006/054206 filed Feb. 28, 2006,JP 2006/054207 filed Feb. 28, 2006, JP 2006/054208 filed Feb. 28, 2006,JP 2006/054209 filed Feb. 28, 2006, JP 2006/182868 filed Jun. 30, 2006,JP 2006/182869 filed Jun. 30, 2006, JP 2006/182870 filed Jun. 30, 2006,2006/182871 filed Jun. 30, 2006, JP 2006/182872 filed Jun. 30, 2011, andJP 2006/182873 filed Jun. 30, 2006.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to equipment for manufacturing the skinmaterial in a method for manufacturing a clad material used for heatexchangers of vehicles or the like.

BACKGROUND ART

In general, for clad materials for heat exchangers used forintercoolers, oil coolers, radiators, condensers, evaporators and heatercores or the like of vehicles, rolled skin materials are used. Forexample, a conventional method for manufacturing a typical clad materialfor heat exchangers is described in Patent Document 1, as follows: Atfirst, an aluminum alloy for core material and an aluminum alloy forskin material (sacrificial anode material and filler material in PatentDocument 1) are melted (hereafter referred to as “dissolved”) and castby the continuous casting, and a heat treatment for homogenization isperformed as necessary. Aluminum alloy ingots for skin material arehot-rolled so as to have a predetermined thickness, respectively (seeS11 a and S11 b in FIG. 14: Note that a heat treatment forhomogenization is described as “homogenization heat”). Subsequently, thealuminum alloy ingot for core material and the hot-rolled plates forskin material (member for skin material) are superposed one on another(see S12 in FIG. 14), then are hot-rolled (clad hot-rolling: see S13 inFIG. 14) according to a common method to make a clad material.

-   [Patent Document 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application    Publication No. 2005-232507 (paragraphs 0037, 0039, and 0040).

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention

However, a typical clad material manufactured by the above methods hasfollowing problems.

(1) Because a hot-rolled plate is used for a skin material, the numberof executions of hot-rolling in a process of manufacturing a cladmaterial is increased, resulting in the decreased productivity.

(2) An ingot for core material is mostly subjected to a scalping processby a milling machine or the like, therefore the surfaces thereof arescalping-processed faces. On the other hand, the surfaces of ahot-rolled plate for skin material are rolling-processed faces in whichrolled lines are formed along the rolling direction. Accordingly, thereis a difference in their surface states between an ingot for corematerial and a hot-rolled plate for skin material, therefore there hasbeen a problem in that deterioration in adhesion between the corematerial and the skin material tends to occur when both are superposedone on another and subjected to a clad hot-rolling process. In order toimprove the adhesion property between the core material and the skinmaterial, a multi-pass rolling under a slight pressure is needed in theclad hot-rolling process, resulting in the decreased productivity.

(3) When a hot-rolled material is used as a member for skin material,the surface state and the flatness (in particular, the flatness in thelengthwise direction) of the hot-rolled member are controlled only bythe hot-rollers, and an oxide film is formed on the surface of therolled plate due to the execution of the hot-rolling, therefore it isdifficult to control the surface state and the flatness of the rolledplate, resulting in a problem in that deterioration in adhesion betweena core material and the skin material cannot be prevented.

(4) When deterioration in adhesion between a core material and a skinmaterial occurs, several problems accompany that as follows: theproductivity of clad members is decreased; a predetermined clad ratecannot be obtained; the quality is deteriorated in which an abnormalityin quality, such as blistering, occurs; and the corrosion resistance isdecreased because of the deterioration in adhesion.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and ageneral purpose of the invention is to provide a method formanufacturing a clad material and the equipment for manufacturing theclad material, in which the productivity is excellent, the surface stateand the flatness of a member for skin material can be readilycontrolled, and the deterioration in adhesion rarely occurs.

Means for Solving the Problems

In order to solve the afore-mentioned problems, the first embodiment ofa method for manufacturing a clad material composed of a core materialand one or more skin materials that are superposed on either one or bothfaces of the core material, includes: a clad material preparationprocess where an ingot for core material, which is manufactured bydissolving and casting a metal for core material in a core materialpreparation process, and an ingot for skin material, which ismanufactured by dissolving and casting a metal for skin materialdifferent from the core material in their component compositions, in askin material preparation process, are prepared respectively; asuperposition process where the ingot for skin material is superposed asa skin material at a predetermined position of either one or both facesof the ingot for core material to manufacture a superposed material; anda clad hot-rolling process where the superposed material is hot-rolledto manufacture a clad material.

When a clad material is manufactured in such procedures, the hot-rollingin manufacturing the member for skin material is not needed because aningot for skin material is used as the member for skin material (skinmaterial). Thus, the number of executions of the hot-rolling can bereduced and the labor saving in operation processes can be attained, aswell as the surface state and the flatness of the clad material can bereadily controlled, in comparison with a conventional method formanufacturing a clad material in which the hot-rolling is performed inmanufacturing a skin material. In addition, because an ingot for skinmaterial is superposed on an ingot for core material, the surface statesof the two ingots are identical, leading to an improved adhesionproperty. Moreover, because of the improved adhesion property, amulti-pass rolling is not needed in the clad hot-rolling process.

In the skin material preparation process, it is preferable that at leastone of the skin materials is manufactured by a slice process in which aningot for skin material, which is manufactured by being dissolved andcast, is sliced into a predetermined thickness.

When a clad material is manufactured in such procedures, because asliced skin material is used as a skin material, it is not needed thatthe thickness of the skin material is reduced by the hot-rolling as witha conventional clad material, therefore the number of executions of thehot-rolling can be reduced and the labor saving in the operationprocesses can be attained, as well as the surface state and the flatnessof the clad material can be readily controlled, in comparison with aconventional method for manufacturing a clad material.

It is preferable that the ingot for skin material manufactured by beingdissolved and cast is further subjected to a heat treatment forhomogenization, prior to the slice process. When a clad material ismanufactured in such procedures, the internal stress of the ingot forskin material is removed, leading to an improved flatness of the slicedskin material and to an improved adhesion property between the corematerial and the skin material.

In the slice process, it is preferable that the ingot for skin materialis sliced in parallel to an installation face of the ingot for skinmaterial installed horizontally. When a clad material is manufactured insuch procedures, the influence by the weight of a cut lump (slice lump),or by the displacement by a shape (for example, the force produced whenthe cut lump is falling down, etc.), is minimized, therefore, theflatness of the sliced skin material is improved, leading to an improvedadhesion property between the core material and the skin material.

In the core material preparation process, it is preferable that at leastone of a scalping process and a heat treatment for homogenization isperformed on the manufactured ingot for core material. When a cladmaterial is manufactured in such procedures, the surface state and theflatness of the ingot for core material are improved, leading to animproved adhesion property between the core material and the skinmaterial.

In the skin material preparation process, it is preferable that at leastone of a scalping process and a heat treatment for homogenization isperformed on the manufactured skin material. When a clad material ismanufactured in such procedures, the surface state and the flatness ofthe skin material can be improved, leading to an improved adhesionproperty between the core material and the skin material.

It is preferable that at least one of the skin materials has theflatness of equal to or less than 1 mm per 1 m in the lengthwisedirection. When a clad material is manufactured in such procedures, theflatness of the skin material can be more improved by controlling theflatness thereof to be equal or less than a predetermined value, leadingto an improved adhesion property between the core material and the skinmaterial.

It is preferable that at least one of the skin materials has thearithmetic mean roughness (Ra) of a surface roughness in the range of0.05 to 1.0 μm. When a clad material is manufactured in such procedures,a gap between the core material and each skin material is rarely formed,leading to a more improved adhesion property.

It is preferable that the thickness of the ingot for core material is inthe range of 200 to 700 mm and the thickness of the skin material is inthe range of 3 to 200 mm. When a clad material is manufactured in suchprocedures, the clad rate of the clad material can be appropriatelyadjusted by specifying thicknesses of the ingot for core material andthe rolled plate for skin material in certain ranges.

It is preferable that the metal for core material and the metal for skinmaterial are aluminum or aluminum alloys. When a clad material ismanufactured in such procedures, because the metal for core material andthe metal for skin material are aluminum or aluminum alloys, theprocessability in each process improves, the adhesion property betweenthe core material and the skin material are improved, and the clad rateof the clad material can be appropriately adjusted.

It is preferable that the skin material is composed of a plurality oflayers, and at least one of the layers of the skin materials ismanufactured by the skin material preparation process.

It is preferable that, after the slice process, the surface of thesliced skin material having a predetermined thickness is furthersubjected to a surface smoothing treatment. When a skin material ismanufactured by such processes, the surface state and the flatness ofthe skin material are improved, leading to an improved adhesion propertybetween the core material and the skin material. Moreover, thepressure-bonding property is improved, leading to the reduction of thenumber of passes of the pressure-bonding.

It is preferable that the surface smoothing treatment is performed byone or more methods selected from a cutting method, a grinding method,and a polishing method. When a skin material is manufactured by suchprocesses, the surface state and the flatness of the skin material areimproved, leading to an improved adhesion property between the corematerial and the skin material. Moreover, the pressure-bonding propertyis improved, leading to the reduction of the number of passes of thepressure-bonding.

It is preferable that the method for manufacturing the clad materialfurther includes a cold-rolling process where cold-rolling is performedafter the hot-rolling process.

It is preferable that: at least one layer of the skin material is afiller material; the filler material is provided so as to be placed onthe side of the most outer surface in the clad material; and at leastone layer of the skin material including the filler material ismanufactured by the skin material preparation process.

It is preferable that: the skin material is provided with the fillermaterial and an intermediate material which is provided between the corematerial and the filler material; the filler material is provided so asto be placed on the side of the most outer surface in the clad material;and at least one layer of the skin material including the fillermaterial and the intermediate material is manufactured by the skinmaterial preparation process.

It is preferable that: the clad material is composed of the corematerial and the skin materials which are superposed on both faces ofthe clad material; at least one layer of the skin materials on one faceof the core material is a filler material, and at least one layer of theskin materials on the other face of the core material is a sacrificialmaterial, and the filler material and the sacrificial material areprovided so as to be placed on the side of the most outer face in eachface of the core material; and at least one layer of the skin materialsincluding the filler material and at least one layer of the skinmaterials including the sacrificial material are manufactured by theskin material preparation process, respectively.

It is preferable that: the clad material is composed of the corematerial and the skin materials which are superposed on both faces ofthe core material; the skin material on one face of the core material isprovided with a filler material and an intermediate material which isprovided between the core material and the filler material, and at leastone layer of the skin materials on the other face of the core materialis a sacrificial material, and the filler material and the sacrificialmaterial are provided so as to be placed on the side of the most outersurface in each face of the core material; and at least one layer of theskin materials including the filler material and the intermediatematerial, and at least one layer of the skin materials including thesacrificial material, are manufactured by the skin material preparationprocess, respectively.

In order to solve the afore-mentioned problems, the equipment formanufacturing a skin material of the second embodiment of the presentinvention is the equipment for manufacturing a skin material used in aclad material composed of a core material and one or more layers of theskin materials superposed on either one or both faces of the corematerial, the equipment including: a casting apparatus which dissolves ametal for skin material different from the core material in theircomponent compositions, and casts the skin material; an ingot-cuttingapparatus which cuts an ingot for skin material which is cast by thecasting apparatus; and a conveying apparatus which conveys the ingot forskin material among each apparatus, wherein the ingot-cutting apparatusis a slicing apparatus which slices the ingot for skin material into apredetermined thickness.

When using such equipment for manufacturing a skin material, an ingotfor skin material is cast by the casting apparatus and sliced into apredetermined thickness by a slicing apparatus which is theingot-cutting apparatus. And, the ingot for skin material is conveyedamong each apparatus by the conveying apparatus.

It is preferable that the slicing apparatus is an apparatus which slicesthe ingot for skin material installed horizontally, in parallel to theinstallation face of the ingot for skin material.

When using such equipment for manufacturing a skin material, an ingotfor skin material is cast by the casting apparatus and sliced into apredetermined thickness in parallel to the installation face of theingot for skin material which is installed horizontally, by the slicingmachine which is the ingot-cutting apparatus. And, the ingot for skinmaterial is conveyed among each apparatus by the conveying apparatus.

It is preferable that the equipment for manufacturing a skin materialfurther includes an apparatus for surface smoothing treatment whichperforms a surface smoothing treatment on the skin material having apredetermined thickness which is cut by the ingot-cutting apparatus.

When using such equipment for manufacturing a skin material, an ingotfor skin material is cast by the casting apparatus and sliced into apredetermined thickness by the slicing apparatus which is theingot-cutting apparatus. And, the skin material having a predeterminedthickness which is cut by the ingot-cutting apparatus, is subjected to asurface smoothing treatment by the apparatus for surface smoothingtreatment, and the ingot for skin material or the skin material isconveyed among each apparatus by the conveying apparatus.

It is preferable that the equipment for manufacturing a skin material isfurther provided with an apparatus for heat treatment for homogenizationwhich performs a heat treatment for homogenization on the ingot for skinmaterial cast by the casting apparatus. When using such equipment formanufacturing a skin material, an ingot for skin material cast by thecasting apparatus is subjected to a heat treatment for homogenization bythe apparatus for heat treatment for homogenization.

It is preferable that the ingot-cutting apparatus includes the slicingapparatus and a cutting apparatus which cuts the ingot for skin materialat the front and the back portions thereof into a predetermined length.When using such equipment for manufacturing a skin material, an ingotfor skin material has a predetermined length with the front and the backportions thereof being cut by the cutting apparatus, and is sliced intoa predetermined thickness by the slicing apparatus.

In order to solve the afore-mentioned problems, a skin material for theclad material of the third embodiment of the present invention is a skinmaterial for clad material, which is used in the method formanufacturing a clad material of the first embodiment, and the skinmaterial for clad material is characterized in that: the skin materialfor clad material is composed of one or more layers; each layer of theskin material is made of a metal different from the core material intheir component compositions; and at least one layer of the skinmaterial has a cast microstructure when the skin material is superposedon either of one or both faces of the core material.

When a skin material is structured in such a way, the surface state andthe flatness of the skin material can be readily controlled because atleast one layer of the skin material has a cast microstructure. As aresult, when superposing a core material and a skin material one onanother, a gap between the core material and the skin material orbetween the skin materials is rarely formed, leading to the improvedadhesion and press-bonding properties. In particular, because the facesof the core material and the skin material which are superposed one onanother, are identical in their crystal structures, the adhesionproperty between them can be improved. And, because of the improvedadhesion property, the press-bonding property can be improved in theclad hot-rolling process of both materials and the number of passes ofthe press-bonding is reduced, therefore leading to the improved yieldrate and the improved productivity. In addition, a skin material is notrequired to be manufactured by the hot-rolling like a conventional cladmaterial, therefore the number of executions of the hot-rolling can bereduced and the labor saving in operation processes can be attained.Moreover, because the hot-rolling is not performed, the thickness of anoxide film is decreased, leading to an improved adhesion propertybetween the core material and the skin material. Thereby, the corrosionresistance of the clad material can be improved.

It is preferable that the skin material is made of a 1000-seriesaluminum alloy in accordance with the JIS standard, or of variousaluminum alloys outside the JIS standard. Examples of the aluminumalloys outside the JIS standard include, an Al—Mn system, an Al—Mn—Cusystem, an Al—Mn—Si system, an Al—Mn—Cu—Si system, an Al—Mn—Mg system,an Al—Mn—Mg—Cu system, an Al—Mn—Mg—Si system, an Al—Mn—Mg—Cu—Si system,an Al—Zn system, an Al—Mg—Zn system, an Al—Si—Zn system, an Al—Si—Mn—Znsystem, an Al—Si—Mg—Zn system, an Al—Si—Mn—Mg—Zn system, an Al—Mn—Znsystem, an Al—Mn—Si—Zn system, an Al-3-10 Si alloy, and an Al-3-10 Si—Znalloy. Such aluminum alloys may further contain 0.05-0.3% of Sc,0.05-0.3% of Zr, 0.05-0.3% of Ti, or 0.001-0.1 of Sr. When a skinmaterial is structured in such a way, the processability of the skinmaterial can be improved, therefore the clad rate of the clad materialcan be appropriately adjusted, as well as the adhesion property betweenthe core material and the skin material can be further improved whensuperposing the core material and the skin material one on another.

It is preferable that at least one layer of the skin material has a castmicrostructure and the thickness thereof is in the range of 10 to 250mm. When the skin material is structured in such a way, the clad rate ofthe clad material can be appropriately adjusted by specifying thethickness of the skin material having a cast microstructure in a certainrange.

According to the method for manufacturing a clad material of the fourthembodiment of the prevent invention, a method for manufacturing a cladmaterial composed of a core material and two or more skin materialswhich are superposed on either one or both faces of the core material,the method for manufacturing a clad material including: a core materialpreparation process where an ingot for core material is manufactured bydissolving and casting a metal for core material; a skin materialpreparation process where an ingot for skin material is manufactured bydissolving and casting a metal for skin material different from themetal for core material in their component compositions; a rolled platefor skin material preparation process where a rolled plate for skinmaterial is manufactured by further hot-rolling the ingot for skinmaterial; a superposition process where a superposed material ismanufactured by superposing the ingot for skin material and the rolledplate for skin material are superposed as skin materials at apredetermined position on either one or both faces of the ingot for corematerial; and a clad hot-rolling process where a clad material ismanufactured by hot-rolling the superposed material.

When a clad material is manufactured in such procedures, the executionof the hot-rolling is not needed in manufacturing a member for skinmaterial, because an ingot for skin material is used as one of themultiple members for skin material (skin materials). Thus, the number ofexecutions of the hot-rolling can be reduced in manufacturing multiplemembers for skin material, in comparison with a conventional method formanufacturing a clad material, leading to a fact that the surface stateand the flatness of the clad material can be readily controlled, as wellas the labor saving in operation processes can be attained. In addition,because an ingot for skin material is superposed on an ingot for corematerial, the surface states of the two ingots are identical, leading toan improved adhesion property. Moreover, because of the improvedadhesion property, execution of a multi-pass rolling is not needed inthe clad hot-rolling process. In addition, because a hot-rolled plate isused as a member for skin material, a skin material and the equipmentfor manufacturing a skin material, which are used for a conventionalclad material, can be used.

It is preferable that the thicknesses of the ingot for skin material andthe hot-rolled plate for skin material are in the range of 3 to 200 mm.

Effect of the Invention

According to the method for manufacturing a clad material of the firstembodiment of the present invention, because the number of theexecutions of the hot-rolling for manufacturing a clad material can bereduced, the surface state and the flatness of the member for skinmaterial (skin material) can be readily controlled, as well as theproductivity is excellent, thereby a clad material can be manufacturedin which the deterioration in adhesion between the core material and theskin material rarely occurs. In addition, because a multi-pass rollingis not needed, a clad material excellent in productivity can bemanufactured.

According to the equipment for manufacturing a skin material of thesecond embodiment of the present invention, a skin material ismanufactured by being sliced by the slicing apparatus, therefore it isnot needed that the thickness of the skin material is reduced byhot-rolling like a conventional clad material, thereby the labor savingin operation processes is attained without using the equipment forhot-rolling when manufacturing a skin material. In addition, a cladmaterial can be manufactured in which: the surface state and theflatness thereof can be readily controlled; the thickness of an oxidefilm is reduced; the deterioration in adhesion rarely occurs when theskin material is superposed on the core material; and the corrosionresistance thereof is excellent.

According to the skin material for clad material of the third embodimentof the present invention, because at least one layer of the skinmaterial has a cast microstructure, the deterioration in adhesion rarelyoccurs when the skin material is superposed on the core material,thereby a clad material excellent in the adhesion property and theproductivity can be obtained. In addition, because it is not needed thatthe skin material is manufactured by hot-rolling like a conventionalclad material, a clad material can be obtained in which: the surfacestate and the flatness thereof can be readily controlled; the thicknessof an oxide film can be reduced; the deterioration in adhesion betweenthe core material and the skin material rarely occurs; and the corrosionresistance thereof is excellent, as well as the number of executions ofthe hot-rolling can be reduced in comparison with a conventional methodfor manufacturing a clad material, thereby the labor saving in operationprocesses can be attained.

According to the method for manufacturing a clad material of the fourthembodiment of the present invention, because a hot-rolled plate for skinmaterial is used as one of the members for skin material (skinmaterials), a clad material can be obtained in which: the surface stateand the flatness the skin material can be readily controlled; and thedeterioration in adhesion between the core material and the skinmaterial rarely occurs, as well as the productivity thereof isexcellent. In addition, a clad material can be manufactured at a cheapproduction cost.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1( a)-1(c) are diagrams illustrating flows of methods formanufacturing a clad material according to the first embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a method for manufacturing aclad material according to the second embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIGS. 3( a)-3(d) are cross-sectional diagrams illustrating structures ofa clad material according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating the outlines of the corematerial preparation process or the skin material preparation process;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating the outlines of the corematerial preparation process or the skin material preparation process;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating the outlines of the corematerial preparation process or the skin material preparation process;

FIGS. 7( a) and 7(b) are schematic diagrams illustrating the outline ofa method for slicing an ingot;

FIG. 8( a) is a schematic diagram illustrating a structure of asuperposed material; and FIG. 8( b) is a schematic diagram illustratingthe outline of the clad hot-rolling process;

FIGS. 9( a) and 9(b) are diagrams illustrating flows of methods formanufacturing the clad material for heat exchangers according to thethird embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 10( a)-10(f) are cross-sectional diagrams illustrating structuresof the clad material for heat exchangers according to the thirdembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the clad material according to thepresent invention;

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram illustrating the equipment formanufacturing a skin material according to the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram illustrating another equipment formanufacturing a skin material according to the present invention;

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a method for manufacturing aconventional clad material.

REFERENCE NUMERALS

-   -   S1 a Core material preparation process    -   S1 b Skin material preparation process    -   S1 c Skin material rolling process    -   S2 a and S2 b Superposition process    -   S3 Clad hot-rolling process    -   1 a, 1 b, 1 c, and 1 d Clad material    -   2 Core Material    -   3 and 4 Skin material    -   17, 25, 34, and 35 Ingot (Ingot for core material, Ingot for        skin material)

BEST MODE OF CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

A method for manufacturing a clad material according to the presentinvention will be described in detail with reference to accompanyingdrawings. In the drawings to be referred to, FIG. 1( a), FIG. 1( b),FIG. 1( c), and FIG. 2 are diagrams illustrating flows of methods formanufacturing a clad material; FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional diagramillustrating the structure of a clad material; FIG. 4 to FIG. 7 areschematic diagrams illustrating the outlines of the core materialpreparation process or the skin material preparation process; FIG. 8( a)is a schematic diagram illustrating the structure of a superposedmaterial; and FIG. 8( b) is a schematic diagram illustrating the outlineof the clad hot-rolling process.

The method for manufacturing a clad material according to the presentinvention can be adopted in any clad as long as the clad is made of acore material and one or more skin materials which are superposed oneither one or both faces of the core material, thereby the clad materialbeing manufactured. Herein, the number of layers of the clad material isnot limited at all, and the method can be preferably applied to: atwo-layer clad material 1 a in which one skin material 3 is clad on oneface of the core material 2, as illustrated in FIG. 3( a); a three-layerclad material 1 b in which two skin materials 3 and 3 are respectivelyclad on both faces of the core material 2, as illustrated in FIG. 3( b);a three-layer clad material is in which two skin materials 3, and 3 areclad on one face of the core material 2, as illustrated in FIG. 3( c);and a three-layer clad material 1 d in which the skin material 3 and aconventional skin material 4 (skin material manufactured from a rolledplate) are respectively clad on both faces of the core material 2, asillustrated in FIG. 3( d); or the like. However, needless to say, themethod can be preferably applied to a clad material having furtherincreased layers, that is, a clad material having four or more layers.

In a clad material of the present invention, a metal for core materialand a metal for skin material are different from each other in their“component compositions.” “Metals different in their componentcompositions” include “metals of the same kind different in theircomponent compositions” and “metals of different kinds different intheir component compositions”.

“Metals of the same kind different in their component compositions”means metals of which base materials are the same kind of metal andcomponent compositions are different from each other. As for suchmetals, for example, like a clad material for heat exchangers, the casewhere a metal for core material is a 3000-series Al—Mn system aluminumalloy, while a metal for skin material is a 4000-series Al—Si systemaluminum alloy (metal for filler material as a skin material), a7000-series Al—Zn—Mg system aluminum alloy (metal for sacrificialmaterial as a skin material), or a 1000-series pure aluminum (metal forintermediate material as a skin material), corresponds to this category.Alternatively, the cases where a core material is Al-0.5 Si-0.5 Cu-1.1Mn-0.4 Mg while a skin material is Al-0.5 Si-0.5 Cu-1.1 Mn, or a corematerial is a 3000-series alloy such as Al-0.5 Si-0.5 Cu-1.1 Mn while askin material is Al-0.5 Si-0.1 Cu-1.1 Mn or Al-0.5 Si-0.1 Cu-1.1 Mn-2.5Zn, also correspond to the “metals of the same kind different in theircomponent compositions”. In addition, like a clad material used for acanned food, the case where a metal for core material is a 3000-seriesAl—Mn system aluminum alloy or a 5000-series Al—Mg system aluminumalloy, while a metal for skin material is a 1000-series pure aluminum,also corresponds to this category. Further, like a polished skin, thecase where a metal for core material is a 2000-series Al—Cu systemaluminum alloy, while a metal for skin material is a 1000-series purealuminum, also corresponds to this category.

“Metals of different kinds different in their component compositions”means metals of which base materials are of different kinds. An exampleof such metals includes, for example, a metal containing a copper alloyor a steel instead of an aluminum alloy. A component composition of theafore-mentioned metals can be appropriately adjusted in accordance withan application of a clad material to be used, and so forth.

Hereafter, the embodiments of the method for manufacturing a cladmaterial of the present invention is described in detail.

1. First Embodiment

The method for manufacturing a clad material according to FirstEmbodiment is a method for manufacturing a clad material composed of acore material and one or more skin materials that are superposed oneither one or both faces of the core material, and, for example, cladmaterials 1 a, 1 b, and 1 c described in FIGS. 3( a)-3(c) aremanufactured by the method. As illustrated in FIGS. 1( a)-1(c), themethod for manufacturing a clad material according to First Embodimentincludes: the clad material preparation process composed of the corematerial preparation process S1 a and the skin material preparationprocess S1 b; the superposition process S2 a; and the clad hot-rollingprocess S3. Hereinafter, each process will be described.

[Clad Material Preparation Process]

The clad material preparation process is a process in which the ingotfor core material manufactured in the core material preparation processS1 a, and the ingot for skin material manufactured in the skin materialpreparation process S1 b, are prepared. In the clad material preparationprocess, either of the ingot for core material or the ingot for skinmaterial may be manufactured and prepared at first, or the bothpreparation processes S1 a and S1 b may be advanced and prepared at asame time.

(1) Core Material Preparation Process: S1 a

In the core material preparation process S1 a, a metal for core materialis dissolved and cast so that an ingot for core material ismanufactured. Herein, the metal for core material is a metal of whichcomponent composition is described before. The ingot is preferablymanufactured by the semi-continuous casting method which is describedlater. However, a casting method is not limited to the semi-continuouscasting method, and in manufacturing, for example, a clad material ofwhich core material has a thin thickness, the thin slab casting method,the twin-roll casting method, or the slab slice method, which aredescribed later, may be adopted. In addition, the width and the lengthof the ingot for core material is not particularly limited; however, thewidth is preferably in the range of 1000 to 2500 mm, and the lengthpreferably in the range of 3000 to 10000 mm, in view of productivity.

(Semi-Continuous Casting Method)

A casting apparatus 10 illustrated in FIG. 4 is adopted for thesemi-continuous casting method, in which a molten metal M (herein, ametal for core material) is poured from the top into a metallicwater-cooled casting mold 11 of which bottom is open, and a solidifiedmetal is taken out continuously from the bottom of the water-cooledcasting mold 11 to obtain an ingot 17 (herein, ingot for core material)having a predetermined thickness T1. At the time, the molten metal M issupplied to the water-cooled casting mold 11 via a tub 12, a nozzle 13,a float 14, and a glass screen 15. The molten metal M supplied to thewater-cooled casting mold 11 is solidified by contacting the inner wallof the water-cooled casting mold 11, which is cooled by the coolingwater W, and becomes a solidified shell 16. The ingot 17 (ingot for corematerial) can be manufactured continuously further with the coolingwater W directly being jetted on the surface of the solidified shell 16from bottom of the water-cooled casting mold 11.

Herein, the thickness T1 of the ingot for core material is preferably inthe range of 200 to 700 mm. If the thickness T1 is outside the range,the clad rate of a clad material is apt to be inappropriate. Inaddition, at least one of a scalping treatment (described as “scalping”in FIGS. 1( a) and 1(b)) for removing a crystallized matter and an oxideformed on the surface of the ingot, and a heat treatment forhomogenization (described as “homogenization heat” in FIGS. 1( a) and1(b)), may be performed by a grinder before the ingot for skin material(described later) is superposed on the ingot for core material,appropriately as necessary.

By performing the scalping treatment, a core material can be obtained inwhich the flatness thereof is equal to or less than 1 mm per 1 m in thelengthwise direction, desirably equal to or less than 0.5 mm, inevaluation of flatness, and the surface roughness thereof is in therange of 0.05 to 1.5 μm, desirably 0.1 to 0.7 μm, in terms of thearithmetic mean roughness (Ra). When the flatness is beyond the range,the deterioration in adhesion is apt to occur in a clad material. Whenthe surface roughness is below the range, the clad material has thedifficulty in the processing. When the surface roughness is beyond therange, the deterioration in adhesion is apt to occur in the cladmaterial. By performing the heat treatment for homogenization, theinternal stress of the ingot for core material is removed, leading to animproved flatness of the core material. Herein, a temperature and aperiod of the heat treatment for homogenization are not particularlylimited; however, the treatment temperature is preferably in the rangeof 350 to 600° C. and the treatment period is preferably in the range of1 to 10 hours.

When the treatment temperature of the heat treatment for homogenizationis below 350° C., the inner stress is less removed and thehomogenization of a solute element, which is segregated during casting,is insufficient, therefore the effect of the heat treatment which isdared to be performed is small. On the other hand, when the treatmenttemperature is beyond 600° C., a phenomenon called burning occurs, inwhich part of the surfaces of the ingot is dissolved, which is apt to bea cause of a defect on the surface of the clad material. When thetreatment period is below 1 hour, the effect of removal of the innerstress is small, and the homogenization is apt to be insufficient. Thetreatment period is preferable to be equal to or less than 10 hours inview of productivity.

(2) Skin Material Preparation Process: S1 b

In the skin material preparation process S1 b, a metal for skinmaterial, which is different from the metal for core material in theircomponent compositions, is dissolved and cast so that one or more ingotsfor skin material are manufactured. The ingot for skin materialmanufactured herein is in some cases superposed as a skin material as itis, at a predetermined position on either of one or both faces of theingot for core material, or in other cases, an ingot for skin materialmanufactured by slicing the ingot for skin material is superposed as askin material at a predetermined position on either one or both faces ofthe ingot for core metal. Herein, the metal for skin material is a metalhaving the above component composition. As for a casting method, thethin slab casting method or the twin-roll casting method illustrated inFIG. 5 and FIG. 6 is preferable, and as for a slicing method, the slabslice method illustrated in FIGS. 7( a) and 7(b) is preferable. However,a casting method is not limited to the thin slab casting method or thetwin-roll casting method, for example, the semi-continuous castingmethod may be used. The width and the length of the ingot for skinmaterial are not particularly limited; however, the width is preferablyin the range of 1000 to 2500 mm, and the length is preferably in therange of 3000 to 10000 mm. Hereinafter, the thin slab casting method,the twin-roll casting method, and the slab slice method will beexplained.

(Thin Slab Casting Method)

A casting apparatus 20 illustrated in FIG. 5 is adopted for the thinslab casting method, in which a molten metal M (herein, a metal for skinmaterial) is poured from the side direction into a metallic water-cooledcasting mold 21 of which side portion is open, and a solidified metal istaken out continuously from the side portion of the water-cooled castingmold 21 to obtain an ingot 25 (herein, ingot for skin material) having apredetermined thickness. At the time, the molten metal M is supplied tothe water-cooled casting mold 21, which is connected via a refractory23, from a tub 22. The molten metal M supplied to the water-cooledcasting mold 21 is solidified by contacting the inner wall of thewater-cooled casting mold 21, which is cooled by the cooling water W,and becomes a solidified shell 25A. The ingot 25 (ingot for corematerial) can be manufactured continuously further with the coolingwater W directly being jetted on the surface of the solidified shell 25Afrom the side portion of the water-cooled casting mold 21. Herein, thethickness T2 of the ingot for skin material is preferably in the rangeof 3 to 200 mm. When the thickness T2 is outside the range, the cladrate of the clad material is apt to be inappropriate. In FIG. 5, thecasting apparatus 20 of which casting direction is horizontal isillustrated, however, a vertical-type casting apparatus of which castingdirection is vertical may be adopted.

(Twin-Roll Casting Method)

As illustrated in FIG. 6, the twin-roll casting method is a castingmethod using rolls facing each other as rotating casting molds, and inthe method, a casting apparatus 30 including a pair of rolls 33 and 33,a side dam 31 installed between the pair of rolls 33 and 33, and acooling device (not illustrated, however, generally installed within therolls 33 and 33) which cools the rolls 33 and 33, is adopted. A moltenmetal M (herein, a metal for skin material) is supplied to a gap betweenthe outer peripheral surfaces of the rotating rolls 33 and 33 from anozzle 32 at a side portion of the side dam 31, and an ingot 34 (herein,ingot for skin material) having a predetermined thickness T3 can becontinuously manufactured by cooling the rolls 33 and 33 with the use ofthe cooling device soon after supplying the molten metal M. Herein, thethickness T3 of the ingot for core material is preferably in the rangeof 3 to 200 mm. If the thickness T3 is outside the range, the clad rateof the clad material is apt to be inappropriate. In FIG. 6, thehorizontal-type casting apparatus 30 of which casting direction ishorizontal is illustrated, however, a vertical-type casting apparatus ofwhich casting direction is vertical may be adopted. In addition, as arotating casting mold, a casting apparatus using a belt or a block maybe adopted.

(Slab Slice Method)

As illustrated in FIG. 7, the slab slice method slices, in the sliceprocess of the skin material preparation process S1 b, the ingot 17 (25)manufactured by the semi-continuous casting method or the thin slabcasting method, by a band saw cutting apparatus (not illustrated) toobtain an ingot for skin material 35 having a predetermined thicknessT4. The ingot for skin material 35 manufactured by slicing becomes askin material. Herein, the thickness T4 of the ingot for skin material35 is preferably in the range of 3 to 200 mm. When the thickness T4 isoutside the range, the clad rate of the clad material is apt to beinappropriate. As illustrated in FIG. 7( b), the ingot 17 (25), which isinstalled horizontally, is preferably sliced in parallel to theinstallation face 35 a of the ingot 17 (25). Herein, the installationface 35 a means the face of the ingot for skin material 17 (25) which isin contact with the installation stand of the slicing machine. Byslicing the ingot in this way, the influence by the weight of a cut lump(slice lump) or the displacement by a shape (for example, the forceproduced when the cut lump is falling down, etc.), is minimized,therefore, the flatness of a sliced skin material can be improved. Asfor a slicing method, the ingot may be sliced by a circular saw cuttingapparatus, or with the use of laser or water.

As illustrated in FIG. 1 (C), the ingot 17 (25) manufactured by theabove casting method may be subjected to a heat treatment forhomogenization (described as “homogenization heat” in FIG. 1 (C)), priorto the ingot being sliced, appropriately as necessary. By performing aheat treatment for homogenization, the internal stress of ingot 17 (25)is removed and the flatness of the sliced skin material is moreimproved. The temperature and the period of the heat treatment forhomogenization are not particularly limited; however, the treatmenttemperature is preferably in the range of 350 to 600° C. and thetreatment period is preferably in the range of 1 to 10 hours.

When the treatment temperature of the heat treatment for homogenizationis below 350° C., the inner stress is less removed and thehomogenization of a solute element, which is segregated during casting,is insufficient, therefore the effect of the heat treatment which isdared to be performed is small. On the other hand, when the treatmenttemperature is beyond 600° C., a phenomenon called burning occurs, inwhich part of the surfaces of the ingot is dissolved, which is apt to bea cause of a defect on the surface of a clad for an heat exchanger. Whenthe treatment period is below 1 hour, the effect of removal of the innerstress is small, and the homogenization is apt to be insufficient. Thetreatment period is preferable to be equal to or less than 10 hours inview of productivity.

The ingot for skin material manufactured by the above methods may besubjected to at least one of a scalping treatment (described as“scalping” in FIGS. 1( a), 7(b), and 7(c)) for removing a crystallizedmatter and an oxide formed on the surface of the ingot, and a heattreatment for homogenization (described as “homogenization heat” inFIGS. 1( a), 1(b), and 1(c)), by a grinder, before the ingot for skinmaterial is superposed on the ingot for core material described above,appropriately as necessary. By performing slicing and the scalpingtreatment in such a way, an ingot for skin material can be obtained inwhich the flatness thereof is equal to or less than 1 mm per 1 m in thelengthwise direction, desirably equal to or less than 0.5 mm, inevaluation of flatness, and the surface roughness thereof is in therange of 0.05 to 1.5 μm, desirably 0.1 to 1.0 μm, in terms of thearithmetic mean roughness (Ra). When the flatness is beyond the range,the deterioration in adhesion is apt to occur in a clad material. Whenthe surface roughness is below the range, the clad material has thedifficulty in the processability. When the surface roughness is beyondthe range, the deterioration in adhesion is apt to occur in the cladmaterial. By performing the heat treatment for homogenization, theinternal stress of the ingot for skin material is removed, leading to amore improved flatness of a core material. Herein, a temperature and aperiod of the heat treatment for homogenization are not particularlylimited; however, the treatment temperature is preferably in the rangeof 350 to 600° C., and the treatment period is preferably in the rangeof 1 to 10 hours.

When the treatment temperature of the heat treatment for homogenizationis below 350° C., the inner stress is less removed and thehomogenization of a solute element, which is segregated during casting,is insufficient, therefore the effect of the heat treatment which isdared to be performed is small. On the other hand, when the treatmenttemperature is beyond 600° C., a phenomenon called burning occurs, inwhich part of the surfaces of the ingot is dissolved, which is apt to bea cause of a defect on the surface of the clad material. When thetreatment period is below 1 hour, the effect of removal of the innerstress is small, and the homogenization is apt to be insufficient. Thetreatment period is preferable to be equal to or less than 10 hours inview of productivity.

As for surface smoothing treatment, a cutting method, such as an endmill cutting, a diamond bite cutting; a grinding method which faces asurface by a grind rocks or the like; and a polishing method such as abuffing, or the like, can be adopted; however, methods for surfacesmoothing treatment are not limited thereto.

By using such a skin material 35, a clad material for a heat exchangercan be obtained in which the corrosion depth thereof after the followingexamination, is equal to or less than 60 μm, the examinations being:1500-hour CASS examination (neutral salt spray test: JIS Z 2371) as anexamination for evaluating the outside corrosion resistance, and2000-hour immersion examination (Na⁺: 118 ppm, Cl⁻: 58 ppm, SO₄ ²⁻: 60ppm, Cu²⁺: 1 ppm, Fe³⁺: 30 ppm) at 80° C. as an examination forevaluating the inside corrosion resistance.

It may be possible that at least one layer of the skin material 35 ismanufactured by the above manufacturing method, and other layer (layers)is manufactured by a conventional method.

(3) Superposition Process: S2 a

As illustrated in FIG. 8( a), in the superposition process S2 a, asuperposed material 36 is manufactured by superposing one ingot for skinmaterial 25, 34, and 35 (17), or two or more ingots for skin material(not illustrated), are superposed at a predetermined position on eitherof one or both faces (not illustrated) of the ingot for core material 17(25, 34, and 35) manufactured in the above process. Herein, thepredetermined position means that the position corresponds to anarrangement of the core material and the skin material in the cladmaterial as a product, for example, the arrangement of the core material2 and the skin material 3 in the clad materials 1 a, 1 b, and 1 c,illustrated in FIGS. 3( a)-3(c). As for a method for superposition, aknown method, for example, a method in which the both end portions ofthe ingot for core material 17 (25, 34, and 35) and the ingot for skinmaterial 25, 34, and 35 (17), are strapped with a band 37, is adopted.Other methods, for example, fixation by welding may be adopted.

(4) Clad Hot-Rolling Process: S3

As illustrated in FIG. 8( b), a clad material 1 a, in the cladhot-rolling process S3, is manufactured with the superposed material 36being hot-rolled after the band 37 of the superposed material 36 hasbeen cut. Herein, a known rolling method is adopted as a hot-rollingmethod. A four-roller rolling machine is illustrated as a rollingmachine to be used, in FIG. 8( b); however, a two-roller rolling machineor a rolling machine having four or more rollers, which are notillustrated, may be used. To obtain a clad material 1 a having apredetermined thickness, a rolling apparatus 40 provided with a singlecolumn of a roll stand is illustrated in FIG. 8( b); however, a rollingapparatus provided with multiple columns of roll stands, which is notillustrated, may be used to repeat executions of hot-rolling.

A clad material manufactured in such a way may be subsequently subjectedto a cold-rolling process, a heat treatment (annealing process), adistortion correction process, or an aging treatment or the like withthe use of common methods in order to provide a desired mechanicalproperty or the like, or may be processed to a certain shape, or may becut into a certain size, as necessary. As an example for that, acold-rolling process is performed on condition that a rolling reductionrate is in the range of 30 to 990; an intermediate annealing process,which is preformed between cold-rolling processes, is performed as anannealing process; and a final annealing process, which is performedafter the final cold-rolling process, is performed in a continuousfurnace or a batch furnace at 200 to 500° C. for 0 to 10 hours, can becited; however, such a treatment or a process is not limited thereto,and such processes or treatments may be performed with the conditionsbeing changed appropriately, as long as the processes or treatmentsprovide an effect (mechanical property).

2. Second Embodiment

Next, a second embodiment of the method for manufacturing a cladmaterial of the present invention will be explained below. The methodfor manufacturing a clad material according to Second Embodiment is amethod for manufacturing a clad material composed of a core material andtwo or more skin materials that are superposed on either one or bothfaces of the core material, and, for example, the clad material 1 d, inwhich the skin material 3 is superposed on one face of the core material2 and the skin material 4 on the other face thereof, as illustrated inFIG. 3( d), is manufactured by the method. As illustrated in FIG. 2, themethod for manufacturing a clad material according to Second Embodimentincludes: the clad material preparation process composed of the corematerial preparation process S1 a, the skin material preparation processS1 b, and the skin material rolling process S1 c; the superpositionprocess S2 b; and the clad hot-rolling process S3. Herein, the skinmaterial 3 in the clad material which has been clad, is formed from theingot for skin material manufactured in the skin material preparationprocess S1 b, via the next processes (the superposition process S2 andthe clad hot-rolling process S3), and the skin material 4 is formed fromthe rolled plate for skin material manufactured in the skin materialrolling process S1 c, via the next processes. Because the core materialpreparation process S1 a, the skin material preparation process S1 b,and the clad hot-rolling process S3 are the same as in the above FirstEmbodiment, the explanation will be omitted, therefore the skin materialhot-rolling process S1 c and the superposition process S2 b will beexplained below.

[Preparation Process]

The preparation process is a process in which the ingot for corematerial manufactured in the core material preparation process S1 a, theingot for skin material manufactured in the skin material preparationprocess S1 b, and the rolled plate for skin material manufactured in theskin material rolling process S1 c, are prepared. In the preparationprocess, any one of the ingot for core material, the ingot for skinmaterial, and the rolled plate for skin material, may be at firstmanufactured and prepared, and two or three processes of the corematerial preparation process S1 a, the skin material preparation processS1 b, and the skin material rolling process S1 c, may be advanced andprepared at a same time.

(Skin Material Rolling Process: S1 c)

In the skin material rolling process, a metal for skin material, whichis different from a metal for core material in their componentcompositions, is dissolved and cast so that the ingot for skin materialis manufactured, and the ingot for skin material is further hot-rolledso that one or more rolled plates for skin material are manufactured. Itshould be noted that the skin material in this process is the metalhaving the afore-mentioned component composition. As for a castingmethod, the semi-continuous casting method and the thin slab castingmethod, which are described before, are preferable. In addition, theingot for skin material may be subjected to at least one of a scalpingtreatment and a heat treatment for homogenization (described as scalpingand homogenization heat, respectively, in FIG. 2). As for a hot-rollingmethod, a known rolling method is performed in the same way as the cladhot-rolling process. A rolling machine to be used is the same as that ofthe clad hot-rolling process. The thickness of the rolled plate for skinmaterial is preferably in the range of 3 to 200 mm, and when thethickness is outside the range, the clad rate of the clad material isapt to be inappropriate.

(Superposition Process: S2B)

In the superposition process S2 b (not illustrated), a superposedmaterial is manufactured in which one or more ingots for skin materialand a rolled plate for skin material manufactured in the previousprocess are superposed at a predetermined position on either one or bothfaces of the ingot for core material manufactured in the previousprocess. Herein, the predetermined positions means that the positionscorrespond to the arrangement of a clad material as a product, forexample, the arrangement of the core material 2, the skin material 3,and the skin material 4, in the clad material 1 d illustrated in FIG. 3(d). Alternatively, an arrangement in which the skin material 3 and theskin material 4 are superposed on one face of the core material 2, maybe possible. As for a method for superposition, a known method, forexample, a method in which the both end portions of the ingot for corematerial, the ingot for skin material, and the rolled plate for skinmaterial, are strapped with a band, or a method for fixation by welding,may be adopted.

It is preferable that each gap formed when superposing them is equal toor less than 10 mm at the maximum, desirably equal to or less than 5 mm.

A clad material manufactured in such a way may be subsequently subjectedto a cold-rolling process, a heat treatment (annealing process), adistortion correction process, or an aging treatment or the like withthe use of common methods in order to provide a desired mechanicalproperty or the like, or may be processed to a certain shape, or may becut into a certain size, as necessary, in the same way as FirstEmbodiment.

3. Third Embodiment

Third Embodiment of the method for manufacturing a clad material of thepresent invention will be described below. In the drawings referred to,FIGS. 9( a) and 9(b) are diagrams illustrating flows of methods formanufacturing a clad material for heat exchangers, and FIG. 10 arecross-sectional diagrams illustrating structures of a clad material forheat exchangers.

As illustrated in FIGS. 9( a) and 9(b), in the method for manufacturinga clad material for heat exchanger according to the present invention,the core material and the skin material, which is superposed on the corematerial, are manufactured by the core material manufacturing process S1a which is a core material preparation process, and by the skin materialmanufacturing process S1 b which is a skin material. Subsequently, asuperposed material is manufactured by superposing the skin material onthe core material at a predetermined position in the superpositionprocess S2, then the superposed material being subjected to a heattreatment for homogenization in the heat treatment process forhomogenization S2−1. After the heat treatment process for homogenizationS2−1, a hot-rolling treatment is performed in the hot-rolling processS3, and further a cold-rolling process is performed in the cold-rollingprocess S4.

Either of the skin material or the core material may be manufactured andprepared at first, or the core material manufacturing process S1 a andthe skin material manufacturing process S1 b may be advanced andprepared at a same time.

When the clad material is a clad material for heat exchangers, eachlayer of the skin material is classified into a filler material 7, asacrificial material 8, and an intermediate material 9, according to thefunctions thereof. At first, a typical structure of a clad for heatexchangers will be described below.

A skin material is used for a clad material for heat exchangers in whichone or more layers of the skin material are superposed on either one orboth faces of the core material, and the number of the layers of theskin material in the clad material for heat exchangers is not limited atall. Examples of layers of the skin material can be exemplified asfollows: for example, as illustrated in FIG. 10( a), a two-layer cladmaterial 5 a for heat exchangers in which one filler material 7 is cladon the core material 6; as illustrated in FIG. 10( b), a three-layerclad material 5 b for heat exchangers in which each filler material 7 isclad on both faces of the core material 6; as illustrated in FIG. 10(c), a three-layer clad material 5 c for heat exchangers in which thefiller material 7 is clad on a face of a core material 6 and thesacrificial material 8 is on the other face thereof; as illustrated inFIG. 10( d), a three-layer clad material 5 d for heat exchangers inwhich the intermediate material 9 and the filler material 7 are clad onone face of the core material 6; as illustrated in FIG. 10( e), afour-layer clad material 5 e for heat exchangers in which theintermediate material 9 and the filler material 7 are clad on one faceof the core material 6, and the sacrificial material 8 is on the otherface thereof; as illustrated in FIG. 10( f), a five-layer clad materialfor heat exchanger in which the intermediate materials 9 and the fillermaterials 7 are clad on both faces of the core material 6. However,needless to say, a six or more-layer clad material for heat exchangers(not illustrated) in which the number of layers of the skin material(filler material, sacrificial material, and intermediate material) isfurther increased, can be preferably adopted.

Each layer of skin material according to the present invention iscomposed of a metal for skin material which is different from a corematerial in their component compositions. Examples of metals for skinmaterial include, for example, an aluminum alloy, a copper alloy, and asteel alloy or the like. It is preferable that the above skin materialsare made of a 1000-series aluminum alloy in accordance with the JISstandard, or of various aluminum alloys outside the JIS standard.Examples of aluminum alloys outside the JIS standard applicable to theabove skin materials include an Al—Mn system, an Al—Mn—Cu system, anAl—Mn—Si system, an Al—Mn—Cu—Si system, an Al—Mn—Mg system, anAl—Mn—Mg—Cu system, an Al—Mn—Mg—Si system, an Al—Mn—Mg—Cu—Si system, anAl—Zn system, an Al—Mg—Zn system, an Al—Si—Zn system, an Al—Si—Mn—Znsystem, an Al—Si—Mg—Zn system, an Al—Si—Mn—Mg—Zn system, an Al—Mn—Znsystem, an Al—Mn—Si—Zn system, an Al-3-10Si alloy, an Al-3-10 Si—Znalloy, etc. Such aluminum alloys may further contain 0.05-0.3% of Sc,0.05-0.3% of Zr, 0.05-0.3% of Ti, or 0.001-0.1 of Sr.

In the case where the filler material 7 and the sacrificial material 8are used, the filler material 7 and the sacrificial material 8 areplaced on the side of the most outer surface of each face of the corematerial, respectively.

[Skin Material Preparation Process]

In the skin material preparation process S1 b, one or more layers of theskin material, which are to be superposed on either one or both faces ofthe core material used in a clad material for heat exchangers, aremanufactured, as illustrated in FIG. 9. The skin material preparationprocess S1 b includes a dissolution process where the metal for skinmaterial, which is different from the core material in their componentcompositions, is dissolved; a casting process where the metal for skinmaterial dissolved in the dissolution process, is cast and made into theingot for skin material; and a slice process where the ingot for skinmaterial is sliced into a predetermined thickness to be at least onelayer of the skin material. A heat treatment for homogenization(described later) may be performed after the casting process, asnecessary, and a surface smoothing treatment (scalping in FIG. 9), whichis described later, may be performed after the slice process.

(Dissolution Process)

In the dissolution process, the metal for skin material different fromthe core material in their component compositions is dissolved. When theclad materials 5 a to 5 f for heat exchangers are provided with thefiller material 7 as the metal for skin material, a 4000-series Al—Sisystem aluminum alloy can be adopted as the filler material. Herein, theAl—Si system alloy includes an alloy also containing Zn other than Si.As Al—Si system alloys, an Al-7-13 Si (mass %) system alloy, and Al-7-13Si (mass %)-2-7 Zn (mass %) system alloy or the like can be adopted, forexample. However, the Al—Si system alloys are not limited thereto, andany alloy used as a filler material can be adopted.

When the clad materials 5 c and 5 e for heat exchangers are providedwith the sacrificial material 8 as the skin material, a 3000-seriesAl—Mn system aluminum alloy or a 7000-series Al—Zn—Mg system aluminumalloy, and further an Al—Zn system alloy can be adopted as the sacrificematerial. Herein, the Al—Zn system alloy includes an alloy alsocontaining Mn and Si other than Zn. As Al—Zn system alloys, an Al-1-7 Zn(mass %), an Al-0.5-1.2 Mn (mass %)-0.5-1.2 Si (mass %)-2-6 Zn (mass %)system alloy, Al-0.8-1.2 Si (mass %)-2-6 Zn (mass %) system alloy, canbe adopted. However, the Al—Zn system alloys are not limited thereto,and any alloy used as the sacrificial material can be adopted.

When the clad materials 5 d to 5 f for heat exchanger are provided withthe intermediate material 9 as the metal for skin material, a1000-series pure aluminum, or a 7000-series Al—Zn—Mg system aluminumalloy or the like can be adopted as the intermediate material, andfurther an Al—Mn system alloy can also be adopted. Herein, the Al—Mnsystem alloy includes an alloy also containing Cu, Si, and Ti, otherthan Mn. As an Al—Mn system alloys, an Al-0.5-1.2 Mn (mass %)-0.5-1.2 Cu(mass %)-0.5-1.2 Si (mass %) system alloy and an Al-0.5-1.2 Mn (mass%)-0.5-1.2 Cu (mass %)-0.5-1.2 Si (mass %)-0.05-0.3 Ti (mass %) can beadopted. However, the Al—Mn system alloys are not limited thereto, andany alloy used as an intermediate material can be adopted. Adjustment ofthe component compositions in the above metals can be appropriatelydetermined in accordance with an application or the like of the cladmaterial to be used.

The intermediate material 9 is provided in order to prevent corrosion ofthe filler material 7 into the core material 6 from occurring, forexample, when brazing the clad material.

(Casting Process)

Explanation of the casting process will be omitted since the processthereof is the same as described in First Embodiment.

(Slice Process)

Explanation of the slice process will be omitted since the processthereof is the same as described in First Embodiment.

[Core Material Preparation Process]

As illustrated in FIG. 9, the core material preparation process S1 aincludes a dissolution process where a metal for core material isdissolved; and a casting process where an ingot for core material ismanufactured by casting the metal for core material dissolved in thedissolution process. At least one of a surface smoothing treatment(scalping in FIG. 1) and a heat treatment for homogenization, may beperformed. Herein, explanation of each process thereof will be omittedsince the process thereof is the same as described in First Embodiment.

[Superposition Process]

Herein, explanation of the superposition process will be omitted sincethe process thereof is the same as described in First Embodiment.

[Heat Treatment for Homogenization Process]

The superposed material 36 manufactured in the superposition process S2is subjected to a heat treatment for homogenization in order to make theinner structure thereof homogenized and soften the superposed materialfor performing the hot-rolling effectively (S2−1).

[Hot-Rolling Process]

Herein, explanation of the hot-rolling process S3 will be omitted sincethe process thereof is the same as described in First Embodiment.

[Cold-Rolling Process]

Herein, explanation of the cold-rolling process S4 will be omitted sincethe process thereof is the same as described in First Embodiment.

As mentioned above, according to the method for manufacturing a cladmaterial according to the present invention, the flatness and thesmoothness of the skin material can be improved because the surfacestate and the flatness of the skin material can be readily controlled,further leading to the reduction in the thickness of an oxide film.Because of the improved adhesion property and the improved press-bondingproperty, the number of passes of pressure-bonding can be reduced,leading to an improved yield rate and an improved productivity.Moreover, a gap between the core material and each skin material israrely formed, leading to the improved corrosion resistance.

4. Fourth Embodiment

Explanation of the method for manufacturing a clad material according toFourth Embodiment will be omitted because the method is the same as thatfor manufacturing a clad material of the above Second Embodiment exceptthat at least one layer of the skin material has a casting structure.

Each layer of the skin material according to the present invention iscomposed of a metal for skin material different from the core materialin their component compositions. As the metal for skin material, forexample, an aluminum alloy, a copper alloy, and a steel alloy or thelike can be cited, and a 1000-series, a 3000-series, a 4000-series, or a7000-series aluminum alloy in accordance with the JIS standard can bepreferably cited.

As illustrated in FIG. 11, at least one layer (skin material 35) of theskin material 35 is required to have a casting structure, whensuperposing the skin material on either one (not shown) or both faces ofthe core material 26, which has a casting structure, in manufacturing aclad material. Herein, the core material 26 is made by cutting the ingotfor core material 17 illustrated in FIG. 4 so as to have a predeterminedlength. Because at least one layer (skin material 35 a) of the skinmaterial 35 has a casting structure, the adhesion property between thecore material 26 and the skin material 35 a is improved. Therefore, thepress-bonding property between them is improved in the hot-rollingprocess of both materials (see FIG. 8( b)), and the number of passes ofpress-bonding is reduced, leading to an improved yield rate and animproved productivity. Moreover, a clad material excellent in thecorrosion resistance can be obtained. In FIG. 11, an example isillustrated in which each one layer of the skin material 35 issuperposed on both faces of the core material 26, respectively. Whenmultiple layers of the skin material 35 are superposed on either one orboth faces of the core material 26, a layer having a casting structure(skin material) may be a layer next to the core material 26 or next tothe skin material 35. However, in view of the adhesion property and thepress-bonding property between the core material 26 and the skinmaterial 35, it is preferable that the layer of the skin material nextto the core material 26 has a casting structure.

In the skin material 35 according to the present invention, it ispreferable that the layers (skin material 35 b) of the skin materialother than the layer having a casting structure (skin material 35 a),are composed of layers having a casting structure, to improve theadhesion property between the core material 26 and the skin material 35or between the layers (not shown) of the skin material 35; however, thelayers of the skin material may be composed of a layer having a rollingtexture, which is manufactured by hot-rolling and used as a skinmaterial for a conventional clad material. The thickness (T4 in FIG. 7)of a layer (skin material 35 a) having a casting structure is preferablyin the range of 10 to 250 mm. When the thickness is outside the range,the clad rate of a clad material is apt to be inappropriate.

It is preferable that the skin material 35 according to the presentinvention has a layer (skin material 35 a) having a casting structureand the surface roughness of the skin material 35 is in the range of0.05 to 1.0 μm, desirably 0.1 to 0.7 μm in terms of the arithmetic meanroughness (Ra). When the surface roughness is below the range, the skinmaterial has the difficulty in the processing, adversely when thesurface roughness is beyond the range, a fine gap between the corematerial 26 and the skin material 35 a is formed, thereby thepress-bonding property and the adhesion property are deteriorated,resulting in occurrence of the deterioration in adhesion in the cladmaterial. It is preferable that the flatness of the layer (skin material35 a) having a casting structure is equal to or less than 1 mm per 1 min the lengthwise direction of the layer, most preferably equal to orless than 0.5 mm. When the flatness is beyond the range, a fine gapbetween the core material 26 and each skin material 35 (not illustrated)is formed, thereby the press-bonding property and the adhesion propertyare deteriorated, resulting in occurrence of the deterioration inadhesion in the clad material.

By using such a skin material 35, the clad material can be manufacturedin which the corrosion depth thereof after the following examination, isequal to or less than 60 μm, the examinations being: 1500-hour CASSexamination (neutral salt spray test: JIS Z 2371) as an examination forevaluating the outside corrosion resistance, and 2000-hour immersionexamination (Na⁺: 118 ppm, Cl⁻: 58 ppm, SO₄ ²⁻: 60 ppm, Cu²⁺:1 ppm,Fe³⁺: 30 ppm) at 80° C. as an examination for evaluating the insidecorrosion resistance.

It is preferable that the layer (skin material 35 b) other than thelayer (skin material 35 a) having a casting structure is alsomanufactured by the above manufacturing method; however, the layer maybe manufactured by a known manufacturing method using a conventionaldissolution, casting, scalping (heat for homogenization), andhot-rolling. The skin materials 35 a and 35 b may be manufactured withthe use of the thin slab casting method or the twin-roll casting methodinstead of the slab slice method.

5. Embodiment of Equipment for Manufacturing Skin Material

The equipment for manufacturing a skin material will be described indetail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In thedrawings referred to, FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram illustrating theequipment for manufacturing skin materials 50, and FIG. 13 is aschematic diagram illustrating other equipment for manufacturing skinmaterials 50.

5.1. Equipment for Manufacturing Skin Material As illustrated in FIG.12, the equipment 50 a for manufacturing a skin material 50 is theequipment for manufacturing a skin material 3 used for a clad materialcomposed of the core material 2 and the one or more layers of the skinmaterial 3, which are superposed on either one or both faces of the corematerial. The equipment 50 a for manufacturing a skin material 50includes: a casting apparatus 51 a which casts the skin material 3 bydissolving the metal for skin material different from the core material2 in their component compositions; an ingot cutting-apparatus 52 whichcuts the ingot for skin material 3′; and a conveying apparatus 53 whichconveys the ingot for the skin material 3′ among each apparatus. Theingot cutting-apparatus 52 may be a slicing apparatus 52 a which slicesthe ingot for skin material 3′ into a predetermined thickness, or theingot cutting-apparatus 52 may include the slicing apparatus 52 a and acutting apparatus 52 b which cuts the ingot for skin material 3′ at thefront and the back portions thereof into a predetermined length.Further, according to need, the ingot cutting-apparatus 52 may beequipped with an apparatus for heat treatment for homogenization 54 usedfor performing a heat treatment for homogenization on the ingot for skinmaterial 3′ cast by the casting apparatus 51 a.

Each apparatus will be described below.

[Casting Apparatus]

The casting apparatus 51 a is, for example, the semi-continuous castingapparatus in which a molten metal for skin material different from thecore material in their component compositions, is poured from the topand a solidified metal is taken out continuously from the bottom of thewater-cooled casting mold to obtain the ingot for skin material 3′having a predetermined thickness.

[Apparatus for Heat Treatment for Homogenization]

The apparatus for heat treatment for homogenization 54 is used forperforming a heat treatment for homogenization on the ingot for skinmaterial 3′ for removing the inner stress and homogenizing the innerstructure thereof, as necessary. By performing the heat treatment forhomogenization, the internal stress of the ingot for skin material 3′ isremoved, leading to an improved flatness of the sliced skin material 3.

[Ingot Cutting Apparatus]

The ingot cutting-apparatus 52 is used for cutting the ingot for skinmaterial 3′ cast by the casting apparatus 51 a, and the apparatus may bea slicing apparatus 52 b, or may include the slicing apparatus 52 b andthe cutting apparatus 52 a.

(Cutting Apparatus)

The cutting apparatus 52 a is used for cutting the ingot for skinmaterial 3′ at the front and the back portions thereof by a band saw inthe depth direction so that the ingot for skin material 3′ has apredetermined length. When cutting the ingot in this way, a dent or aprotrusion formed at the front or back portion of the ingot for skinmaterial 3′ can be removed, leading to smooth faces at front and backportions of the ingot for skin material 3′. A circular saw, waterpressure, or laser or the like can be adopted for cutting as well as aband saw; however, tools for cutting are not limited thereto. Inaddition, the side faces of the ingot for skin material 3′ is cut whensuperposing the core material 2 and the skin material 3 one on another,which will be described later.

(Slicing Machine)

The slicing machine 52 b slices the ingot for skin material 3′ cast bythe casting apparatus 51 a into a predetermined thickness by, forexample, a band saw. The band saw includes an endless-type band sawwhich cuts while rotating. The ingot for skin material 3′ can be slicedby putting the edge of the band saw on one of the front or the backfaces of the ingot, then by rotating the edge to cut the ingot, furtherby the slicing machine 52 b moving toward the other side of the back orthe front faces of the ingot. By repeating the operation, the ingot forskin material 3′ is sliced into a predetermined thickness and multipleskin materials 3 can be manufactured. The ingot for skin material 3′ maybe sliced into a predetermined thickness by transferring the ingot 3′,with the slicing machine 52 b being fixed.

It is preferable that the ingot for skin material 3′ is sliced inparallel to the installation face of the ingot for skin material 3′installed horizontally. Herein, the installation face means the face ofthe ingot for skin material 3′ which is in contact with the installationstand of the slicing machine. By slicing the ingot in this way, theinfluence by the weight of a cut lump (slice lump) or the displacementby a shape (for example, the force produced when the cut lump is fallingdown, etc.), is minimized, therefore, the flatness of a sliced skinmaterial can be improved.

The thickness of the sliced skin material is preferably in the range of10 to 250 mm. When the thickness of the sliced skin material 3 isoutside the range, the clad rate of a clad material is apt to beinappropriate. Herein, the edge of the band saw may be formed two ormore stages not one stage. By forming the edge of the band saw inmultiple stages, the slice process of the ingot for skin material 3′ canbe improved in its efficiency. The band saw used in the slicing machine52 b may be a usual one, and as a slicing tool, a circular saw, waterpressure, laser or the like can be adopted; however, tools for slicingare not limited thereto.

In cutting the ingot for skin material 3′, either one of cutting theingot for skin material 3′ at the front and the back portions thereof bythe cutting apparatus 52 a, or slicing the ingot for skin material 3′ bythe slicing apparatus 52, may be performed first. Herein, the abovecutting apparatus 52 a and the slicing apparatus 52 b are structured asdifferent apparatuses; however, cutting the front and back portions ofthe ingot for skin material 3′, and slicing the ingot for skin material3′, may be performed by one apparatus.

[Conveying Apparatus]

The conveying apparatus 53 is used for conveying the ingot for skinmaterial 3′ among the above casting apparatus 51 a, the cuttingapparatus 52 a, and the slicing apparatus 52 b; however, the conveyingapparatus 53 may convey the ingot for skin material 3′ or the skinmaterial 3 among other apparatuses. As the conveying apparatus 53, anapparatus provided with a belt conveyor or a roller or the like can beadopted; however, the apparatus is not limited thereto, and an apparatusin which the ingot for skin material 3′, or the skin material 3 isconveyed by hanging them with a wire, a chain, or vacuum or the like.

5.2. Other Equipment for Manufacturing Skin Materials

Modifications of the equipment for manufacturing skin materials will beexemplified below. As illustrated in FIG. 13, the equipment 50 c formanufacturing skin materials is the equipment for manufacturing the skinmaterial 3 used in a clad material composed of the core material 2 andone or more layers of the skin material 3 which are superposed on eitherone or both faces of the core material 2. The equipment formanufacturing the skin material 3 includes: a casting apparatus 51 awhich casts the skin material 3 by dissolving a metal for skin materialdifferent from the core material in their component compositions; aningot-cutting apparatus 52 which cuts the ingot for skin material 3′; anapparatus for surface smoothing treatment 55 which performs a surfacesmoothing treatment; and a conveying apparatus 53 which conveys theingot for skin material 3′ or the skin material 3 among each apparatus.The ingot-cutting apparatus 52 may be the slicing apparatus 52 b whichslices the ingot for skin material 3′ into a predetermined thickness.Alternatively, the ingot-cutting apparatus 52 may be provided with theslicing apparatus 52 b and the cutting apparatus 52 a which makes theingot have a predetermined length by cutting the ingot for skin material3′ at the front and the back portions of the ingot. The ingot-cuttingapparatus may be provided with an apparatus for heat treatment forhomogenization 54 which performs a heat treatment for homogenization onthe ingot for skin material 3′ cast by the casting apparatus 51 a, asnecessary.

Each apparatus will be described below. Herein, explanation of thecasting apparatus 51 a, the apparatus for the treatment forhomogenization 54, the cutting apparatus 52 a, and the slicing apparatus52 b, will be omitted because they are the same as described before.

[Conveying Apparatus]

The conveying apparatus 53 is used for conveying the ingot for skinmaterial 3′ or the skin material 3 among the above the casting apparatus51 a, the cutting apparatus 52 a, and the slicing apparatus 52 b;however, the conveying apparatus may convey the ingot for skin material3′ and the skin material 3 among other apparatuses. As the conveyingapparatus 53, an apparatus provided with a belt conveyor or a roller orthe like can be adopted; however, the apparatus is not limited thereto,and an apparatus in which the ingot for skin material 3′, or the skinmaterial 3 is conveyed by hanging them with a wire, a chain, or vacuumor the like. The skin material 3 is conveyed, after the ingot for skinmaterial 3′ is sliced into a predetermined thickness by a band saw, byhanging the sliced skin material 3 with the use of vacuum then byconveying it onto the machine platen of the apparatus for surfacesmoothing treatment. The skin material 3 may be conveyed onto themachine platen of the apparatus for surface smoothing treatment bymoving the skin material 3 on the conveying apparatus 53.

[Apparatus for Surface Smoothing Treatment]

The apparatus for surface smoothing treatment is used for smoothing thesurface of the skin material 3 sliced by the slicing apparatus 52 b. Theskin material 3 conveyed by the above conveying apparatus 53 issubjected to a surface smoothing treatment by the apparatus for surfacesmoothing treatment 55. The back face of the skin material 3 may besubjected to a surface smoothing treatment after reversing the skinmaterial 3 by a reversing apparatus. As for surface smoothing treatment,a cutting method, such as an end mill cutting, a diamond bite cutting; agrinding method which faces a surface by a grind rocks or the like; anda polishing method such as a buffing, or the like, can be adopted;however, methods for surface smoothing treatment are not limitedthereto. As a method for surface smoothing treatment, a plurality ofmethods may be adopted in combination, such as the case where scalpingis performed after cutting.

At least one layer of the skin material 3 may by manufactured by theabove equipment for manufacturing skin materials 50 a or 50 c, and theother layer or layers may be manufactured by conventional equipment formanufacturing skin materials.

The equipment for manufacturing clad materials 50 using the aboveequipment for manufacturing skin materials 50 a or 50 c, will bedescribed below. The equipment for manufacturing clad materials 50includes: the above equipment for manufacturing skin materials 50 a or50 c; the equipment for manufacturing core materials 2 composed of acasting apparatus 51 b which dissolves and casts a metal for corematerial different from the skin material, and a cutting apparatus 52 bwhich makes the ingot for core material 3′ cast by the casting apparatus51 b, have a predetermined length by cutting the ingot 3′ in thelengthwise direction; an apparatus for superposition (not illustrated)which makes a superposed material by superposing the skin material 3 andthe core material 2 one on another; and an apparatus for hot-rolling(not illustrated) which hot-rolls the superposed material.

[Equipment for Manufacturing Skin Material]

Herein, explanation of the equipment for manufacturing skin materials 50a or 50 c will be omitted because the equipment is the same as describedbefore.

[Equipment for Manufacturing Core Materials] (Casting Apparatus)

In the casting apparatus 51 b, of the equipment 50 b for manufacturingthe core material, a molten metal for core material, which is dissolvedby, for example, the semi-continuous casting in the dissolution processand different from the skin material 3 in their component compositions,is poured from the top, and a solidified metal is taken out continuouslyfrom the bottom of the water-cooled casting mold to obtain the ingot forcore material having a predetermined thickness.

(Cutting Apparatus)

The cutting apparatus 52 b is used for cutting the ingot for corematerial 2′ cast by the casting apparatus 51 b by a circular saw into apredetermined size. A band saw, water pressure, and laser or the like aswell as a circular saw can be adopted as cutting tools; however, thetools are not limited thereto.

[Apparatus for Superposition]

The apparatus for superposition makes a superposed material bysuperposing the skin material 3 or the multiple skin materials 3 oneither one or both faces of the core material 2, which is manufacturedin the above process, at predetermined positions. As for a method forsuperposition, a known method, for example, a method in which the bothend portions of the core material 2 and the skin material 3 are strappedwith a band, is adopted. Other methods, for example, fixation by weldingmay be adopted. A superposed material thus manufactured may be subjectedto a heat treatment for homogenization by using the apparatus for heattreatment for homogenization 54 in order to remove the inner stress andmake the hot-rolling performed easily, as necessary.

[Apparatus for Hot-Rolling] (Hot-Rolling)

In the hot-rolling process, the above band for fixing the superposedmaterial is cut and a clad material is manufactured by hot-rolling thesuperposed material. As for a method for hot-rolling, a known method forrolling is adopted. A rolling apparatus to be used may be a two-stagerolling apparatus or a four or more-stage rolling apparatus as well as afour-stage rolling apparatus. Hot-rolling may be repeated to obtain aclad material having a predetermined thickness by using a rollingapparatus provided with multiple rows of roll-stands as well as arolling apparatus provided with a row of roll-stand.

(Cold-Rolling)

A clad material thus manufactured is subsequently subjected to acold-rolling treatment, as necessary. A cold-rolling process may beperformed on condition that a rolling reduction rate is in the range of30 to 99%, as an example.

The clad material may be subjected to a heat treatment (annealingprocess), a distortion correction process, or an aging treatment or thelike with the use of common methods in order to provide a desiredmechanical property or the like, or may be processed to a certain shape,or may be cut into a certain size, as necessary. As an example, examplesof annealing processes include a rough annealing performed prior to thecold-rolling, an intermediate annealing performed between thecold-rolling processes and a final annealing performed after the finalcold-rolling, which are performed at 200 to 500° C. for 0 to 10 hours ina continuous furnace or a batch furnace, can be cited; however, suchprocesses or treatments are not limited thereto, and it is needless tosay that such processes or treatments may be performed with theconditions being changed appropriately, as long as the processes ortreatments provide an advantage (mechanical property).

As stated above, according to the equipment for manufacturing skinmaterials of the present invention, it is not required that thethickness of a skin material is reduced by hot-rolling as with aconventional clad material, therefore there is no need for using ahot-rolling apparatus in manufacturing a skin material, leading to thelabor saving in operation processes. In addition, because the surfacestate and the flatness of the skin material can be readily controlled,the flatness and the smoothness of the skin material can be improved andfurther the thickness of an oxide film can be also reduced. Further, insuperposing the skin material on the core material, because the adhesionproperty and the press-bonding property between the core material andthe skin material are improved, therefore the number of passes ofhot-rolling can be reduced, leading to an improved yield rate and animproved productivity. Moreover, a gap between the core material andeach skin material is rarely formed, therefore leading to an improvedcorrosion resistance.

The method for manufacturing a clad material and the equipment formanufacturing the clad material have been described above; however,nothing in the description should be interpreted to limit the spirit andthe scope of the present invention. The scope of the present inventionshould be interpreted solely based on the description in the followingclaims. And a person skilled in the art should understand that there aremany alterations and modifications possible without departing from thespirit and the scope of the present invention and those alterations andmodifications are also effective as embodiments of the presentinvention.

1. A method for manufacturing a clad material composed of a core material and one or more skin materials that are superposed on either one or both faces of the core material, the method for manufacturing the clad material comprising: a core material preparation process where an ingot for core material is manufactured by melting, mixing and casting a metal for core material in a core material preparation process; a skin material preparation process where an ingot for skin material is manufactured by melting, mixing and casting a metal for skin material different from the core material in their component compositions; a superposition process where the ingot for skin material is superposed as a skin material at a predetermined position of either one or both faces of the ingot for core material to manufacture a superposed material; and a clad hot-rolling process where the superposed material is hot-rolled to manufacture a clad material, wherein, in the skin material preparation process, at least one of the skin materials is manufactured by a slice process where an ingot for skin material manufactured by being melted, mixed and cast is sliced into a predetermined thickness, wherein equipment for manufacturing the skin material comprises a casting apparatus which melts and mixes a metal for the skin material different from the core material in their component compositions, and casts the skin material; an ingot-cutting apparatus which cuts an ingot for skin material which is cast by the casting apparatus; and a conveying apparatus which conveys the ingot for skin material among each apparatus, wherein the ingot-cutting apparatus is a slicing apparatus which slices the ingot for skin material into a predetermined thickness.
 2. The equipment for manufacturing the skin material according to claim 1, wherein the slicing apparatus is an apparatus which slices the ingot for skin material installed horizontally, in parallel to the installation face of the ingot for skin material.
 3. The equipment for manufacturing the skin material according to claim 1, wherein the equipment for manufacturing the skin material further comprises an apparatus for surface smoothing treatment which performs a surface smoothing treatment on the skin material having a predetermined thickness which is cut by the ingot-cutting apparatus.
 4. The equipment for manufacturing the skin material according to claim 1, wherein the equipment for manufacturing the skin material is further provided with an apparatus for heat treatment for homogenization which performs a heat treatment for homogenization on the ingot for skin material cast by the casting apparatus.
 5. The equipment for manufacturing the skin material according to claim 1, wherein the ingot-cutting apparatus includes the slicing apparatus and a cutting apparatus which cuts the ingot for skin material at the front and the back portions thereof into a predetermined length. 